My world crashed around me when I found out 3 days ago that my wonderful dog Porter had osteosarcoma. After three hours of x-rays, blood work, and discussions with our vet, I hit the internet to find out more about this awful disease and what we could do about it. Our options, according to our vet, were 1) do nothing, provide palliative care, and he might survive 3-4 months with pain; 2) amputate, provide complete immediate pain relief, and follow with chemotherapy to try to kill any stray cancer cells, and perhaps provide 4-6 months (or maybe 12? or more?) of life. The good news was that the cancer didn’t seem too progressed, nor were there mets on his lungs.
The options didn’t sound great. I immediately wanted to amputate – get rid of as much of the cancer as fast as possible and give Porter a fighting chance. My husband was worried. He thought amputation would just be a painful surgery that would upset Porter’s life much more than doing nothing. That’s where the internet came in. Thanks to websites like Tripawd and Bonecancerdogs, we were able to view pictures, videos, and read stories about people’s journeys with canine bone cancer. The number one thing we found out? It sure seemed like everyone said that dogs weren’t nearly as affected by only having 3 legs as people thought. That the problem was people, not the dog. Given some time to adjust to their new circumstances, learning to rebalance, and learning to do things on 3 legs, they seemed to do just fine. That’s what convinced my husband. We scheduled the amputation immediately.
So, now my brain goes to dumb things. Like he won’t be able to shake. Or scratch around on his bed like he does every night to make his nest. Porter has been a working pet therapy dog for a year at a local Shriners Hospital with kids undergoing orthopedic surgeries (irony was not lost) – will he still be able to do that? Will he live long enough to even consider doing it again? Will a dog on three legs help inspire kids with orthopedic issues to be brave? Why would something so awful happen to a dog who is so pure and good? Were we being punished? He doesn’t even know what’s happening to him. And of course, the inevitable cancer words: IT’S NOT FAIR.
After reading all of these sites, and being helped by them, I decided that I would write a blog. Not really for me. But I thought, maybe it might help someone else like me who needed advice and real world opinions on how to proceed after an osteosarcoma diagnosis. This blog may be clinical, but I want to provide the raw facts and emotions of this journey.
Welcome! We’re sorry to hear about Porter, but glad you found us. Thank you for sharing Porter’s story and best wishes for his speedy recovery! Please keep us posted.